Commander Brackets Beta Update – October 21, 2025: A Look Ahead

The Commander Summit, held in September, marked a significant advancement for Commander Brackets. The Commander Format Panel met in person at the Renton office for three days to talk, brainstorm, and have meetings. This unique opportunity allowed the panel to reflect on the past and strategize for the future of Commander Brackets, particularly in light of their remarkable success over the past three MagicCons and nine months of usage.

The first feedback has been very positive, with many players saying that there is more talking and excitement about deck choices, game changers, and bracket picks. The new format has led to more pregame talks than ever. Players are talking about their decks and game plans based on the five different brackets. However, as with any evolving system, there are still areas for improvement.

Game-Changers – October 2025 Download

Adjusting Brackets: Making Intent and Expectations Clear

The Commander Summit highlighted the important need to make the reasons behind deck building and gameplay more clear. The brackets have worked well to help players identify games, but there has been a problem that won’t go away: some decks, especially those in Bracket 2, technically fit the rules but can still play at a much higher power level than they should. The Commander team wants to make the rules for each bracket stronger so that players know what to expect from decks at each level.

The update also modifies the count of turns played in each bracket. For example, Bracket 3 will now say that players should expect to play at least six turns before a win or loss happens. This makes it clearer when games should end in general. This new method will help people who are upset about combos that end the game too soon and will make the power balance between brackets more stable.

A Close Look at Bracket Philosophy

The update will make it easier for people who are having trouble deciding which bracket to play in by giving a clearer breakdown of what each bracket expects, such as the types of win conditions, deck contents, and how many turns players should expect before a game ends.

Bracket 1: Exhibition will keep putting more emphasis on thematic decks than on competitive power. Decks should have a unique theme that is often flexible in terms of legality and commanders. Gameplay should be more about showing off creative ideas.

Bracket 2: Core will no longer be linked to prebuilt decks. The main focus will still be on simple decks that put fun and creativity ahead of optimization. The low-pressure gameplay will encourage players to interact with each other.

Bracket 3: Upgraded will have decks with high-quality cards that work well together. This will make players more active and cause more trouble. Games should last at least six turns, which gives players plenty of time to put their plans into action.

Bracket 4: Optimized will look at decks that are quick, steady, and effective and have strong win conditions that often end games quickly. Players can look forward to at least four turns of fast-paced action.

Bracket 5: cEDH will still be the most competitive bracket, with decks carefully tuned for speed and consistency. Games often end in a few turns because strategies are so effective.

Changes to the Game Changers List

The updated Game Changers list is one of the most talked-about changes. It will be changed to better match the way people play the game now. At first, the team added many strong cards based on what the community said. But the list swung too far, making it difficult to keep track of and manage all the cards. The goal now is to focus on cards that change the game a lot, especially in the early stages.

Expropriate, Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur, and Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger, are just a few of the cards that will be taken off the Game Changers list. These cards were found to be too powerful and not fun to play with casually. Furthermore, cards like Kinnan, Bonder Prodigy, and Yuriko, the Tiger’s Shadow will be taken out because they were thought to be too strong for casual play.

Food Chain will also be taken off the list because it is mostly a combo card and doesn’t fit the current goal of stopping early-game combos in lower brackets. We will also get rid of Deflecting Swat. It’s a strong free spell, but it doesn’t quite fit in with the other disruptive spells.

Important Topics from the Commander Summit

It wasn’t just about changing the brackets at the Commander Summit. There were also talks about changes that could have big effects on the format in the future. One hot topic was the possibility of banning or limiting famous cards like Rhystic Study and Thassa’s Oracle. People have been arguing about both cards. In casual games, Rhystic Study often turns into an advantage, and in high-level cEDH, Thassa’s Oracle is a must-have. We are soliciting opinions from the community regarding the continued legality of these cards or the necessity for modifications.

Another thing that was talked about was the idea of making another bracket between Brackets 2 and 3 or 3 and 4 to give players a more detailed experience. The team is still getting feedback to see if this would be a beneficial change.

Lastly, there was a suggestion to let hybrid mana costs be treated as either of the two colors when building a deck. This would allow decks with fewer colors more options, which would make them more flexible without breaking the main design rules of Commander.

Looking forward to 2026

The Commander team is now looking ahead to 2026, thanks to these changes. We will change the brackets again as the community provides more feedback, and we may revisit the Game Changers list. The Commander team plans to do another check-in by the beginning of next year to see how these changes have affected gameplay and what other changes might be coming.

Players are encouraged to join in on the ongoing conversation and share their thoughts in the meantime. The Commander team is dedicated to keeping the format fresh and exciting while keeping the fun and community spirit at its core. With these changes, Commander Brackets is ready to continue giving players of all skill levels fun, fair, and ever-changing experiences for years to come.

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